This invention relates to dead man control arrangements for both push and self-propelled lawn mowers. Attention is directed to Hurd, U.S. Pat. No. 4,335,566 which discloses a single control member for actuating a clutch drive and mower propelling means, unlike the invention disclosed herein.
The invention provides a lawn mower including a blade housing supporting a prime mover which drives a cutter blade. The prime mover causes rotation of a drive shaft and clutch means driven by the drive shaft is engagable and disengagable with the cutter blade. A handle is connected to the housing and the control means is movably attached to the handle.
The lawn mower further includes means operable to permit the engagement and disengagement of the clutch means by the movement of the control means. This means includes a flexible member connecting the control means and the clutch means and means restricting a substantial portion of the flexible member to a predetermined path along the handle. In one embodiment, the restricting means includes a pulley rotatably attached to the handle between the control means and the housing and the flexible member is guided around the pulley.
In one embodiment, the lawn mower includes biasing means biasing the control means toward a disengaged clutch position and in another embodiment the biasing means and clutch means comprises a self-biasing clutch.
In one embodiment, the mower is self-propelled and includes travel means connected to the housing and supporting travel of the housing over the ground. The mower also includes mower propelling means engagable with the travel means. An upper handle is movably attached to a guiding handle and linkage means connects the upper handle to the mower propelling means. The linkage means is movable in response to movement of the upper handle to cause engagement of the mower propelling means. The self-propelled lawn mower has the control means movably attached to the upper handle and the pulley has a periphery generally adjacent the attachment of the upper handle to the guiding handle so the upper handle and control means can be operated independently.
In one embodiment, the lawn mower includes a lock lever means for preventing the inadvertent movement of the control means. The lock lever means comprises a V-shaped lever pivotally attached to the guiding handle adjacent a plate with a rounded edge attached to the control means adjacent the attachment of the control means to the guiding handle. The plate's rounded edge includes a notch and the V-shaped lever is pivotable between a position where the lever is received in the notch and prevents the pivotal movement of the control means and a position where the lever is out of the notch and permits the pivotal movement of the control means.
Various of the features and advantages of various embodiments of the invention will become apparent upon reviewing the following drawings, the detailed description and the appended claims.